Mut is a municipality and
district
A district is a type of administrative division that in some countries is managed by the local government. Across the world, areas known as "districts" vary greatly in size, spanning regions or county, counties, several municipality, municip ...
of
Mersin Province
Mersin Province (), formerly İçel Province (), is a Provinces of Turkey, province and Metropolitan municipalities in Turkey, metropolitan municipality in southern Turkey, on the Mediterranean Sea, Mediterranean coast between Antalya Province, A ...
,
Turkey
Turkey, officially the Republic of Türkiye, is a country mainly located in Anatolia in West Asia, with a relatively small part called East Thrace in Southeast Europe. It borders the Black Sea to the north; Georgia (country), Georgia, Armen ...
. Its area is 2,718 km
2, and its population is 62,874 (2022).
Mut is a rural district at the foot of the
Sertavul Pass on the road over the
Taurus Mountains
The Taurus Mountains (Turkish language, Turkish: ''Toros Dağları'' or ''Toroslar,'' Greek language, Greek'':'' Ταύρος) are a mountain range, mountain complex in southern Turkey, separating the Mediterranean Sea, Mediterranean coastal reg ...
from
Ankara
Ankara is the capital city of Turkey and List of national capitals by area, the largest capital by area in the world. Located in the Central Anatolia Region, central part of Anatolia, the city has a population of 5,290,822 in its urban center ( ...
and
Konya
Konya is a major city in central Turkey, on the southwestern edge of the Central Anatolian Plateau, and is the capital of Konya Province. During antiquity and into Seljuk times it was known as Iconium. In 19th-century accounts of the city in En ...
to the
Mediterranean
The Mediterranean Sea ( ) is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by the Mediterranean basin and almost completely enclosed by land: on the east by the Levant in West Asia, on the north by Anatolia in West Asia and Southern ...
coast at
Anamur or
Silifke
Silifke is a municipality and Districts of Turkey, district of Mersin Province, Mersin Province, Turkey. Its area is 2,692 km2, and its population is 132,665 (2022). It is west of the city of Mersin, on the west end of the Çukurova plain.
...
. Mut is known for its special apricot variety, ''Mut şekerparesi'', and a statue of a girl carrying a basket of them stands at the entrance to the town. The summer is hot and the people of Mut retreat to high meadows (so called
yayla) even further up the mountainside. The forests up here are home to wild boar, and the Gezende reservoir on the
Ermenek River is a welcome patch of blue in this dry district. The dam has a hydro-electric power station built in
Romania
Romania is a country located at the crossroads of Central Europe, Central, Eastern Europe, Eastern and Southeast Europe. It borders Ukraine to the north and east, Hungary to the west, Serbia to the southwest, Bulgaria to the south, Moldova to ...
.
History
The area has probably been inhabited since the time of the
Hittites
The Hittites () were an Anatolian peoples, Anatolian Proto-Indo-Europeans, Indo-European people who formed one of the first major civilizations of the Bronze Age in West Asia. Possibly originating from beyond the Black Sea, they settled in mo ...
(2000 BC), and was later part of ancient
Cilicia
Cilicia () is a geographical region in southern Anatolia, extending inland from the northeastern coasts of the Mediterranean Sea. Cilicia has a population ranging over six million, concentrated mostly at the Cilician plain (). The region inclu ...
.
Roman period
Under the
Roman Empire
The Roman Empire ruled the Mediterranean and much of Europe, Western Asia and North Africa. The Roman people, Romans conquered most of this during the Roman Republic, Republic, and it was ruled by emperors following Octavian's assumption of ...
, the town was called Claudiopolis.
[''Alahan Monastery: A Masterpiece of Early Christian Architecture'', Michael Gough, The Metropolitan Museum of Art Bulletin, New Series, Vol. 26, No. 10 (Jun., 1968), 457.JSTOR] Alahan Monastery, north of Claudiopolis, was started in the second half of the fifth century by the
Emperor Leo I and later finish by
Emperor Zeno.
Middle ages
The Romans were succeeded by the
Kingdom of Armenia. In the 13th century the Armenians were replaced by the
Karamanid
The Karamanids ( or ), also known as the Emirate of Karaman and Beylik of Karaman (), was a Turkish people, Turkish Anatolian beyliks, Anatolian beylik (principality) of Salur tribe origin, descended from Oghuz Turks, centered in South-Centra ...
clan who founded the state of the same name. The mosque of
Lal Pasha, and the Red Minaret (''Kızılminare'') are among the buildings from the Karamanids that still stand in Mut today.
Economy
Small cattle breeding is one of the important livelihoods of the region.
Composition
There are 102
neighbourhoods
A neighbourhood (Commonwealth English) or neighborhood (American English) is a geographically localized community within a larger town, city, suburb or rural area, sometimes consisting of a single street and the buildings lining it. Neighbourh ...
in Mut District:
*
Alaçam
*
Aşağıköselerli
*
Aydınoğlu
*
Bağcağız
*
Ballı
*
Barabanlı
*
Bozdoğan
*
Burunköy
*
Çağlayangedik
*
Çaltılı
*
Çamlıca
*
Çampınar
*
Çatakbağ
*
Çatalharman
* Ceritler
*
Çınarlı
*
Çivi
*
Çömelek
*
Çortak
*
Çukurbağ
* Cumhuriyet
*
Dağpazarı
*
Demirkapı
*
Dereköy
*
Derinçay
* Deveci
*
Diştaş
* Doğancı
*
Elbeyli
*
Elmapınar
*
Esençay
*
Evren
*
Fakırca
*
Geçimli
*
Gençali
*
Göcekler
*
Gökçetaş
*
Göksu
* Güllük
*
Güme
*
Güzelköy
*
Güzelyurt
*
Hacıahmetli
*
Hacıilyaslı
*
Hacınuhlu
*
Hacısait
*
Hamamköy
*
Haydarköy
*
Hisarköy
*
Hocalı
*
İbrahimli
*
Ilıca
*
Irmaklı
*
Işıklar
*
Kadıköy
Kadıköy () is a municipality and Districts of Turkey, district on the Asian side of Istanbul Province, Istanbul Province, Turkey. Its area is 25 km2, and its population is 467,919 (2023). It is a large and populous area in the Asian si ...
* Kale
*
Karacaoğlan
*
Karadiken
* Karşıyaka
*
Kavaklı
*
Kavaközü
*
Kayabaşı
*
Kayaönü
*
Kelceköy
*
Kemenli
*
Kırkkavak
*
Kışlaköy
*
Kızılalan
*
Köselerli
* Kültür
*
Kumaçukuru
*
Kürkçü
*
Kurtsuyu
*
Kurtuluş
Kurtuluş is a neighbourhood of the Şişli district of Istanbul that was originally called ''Tatavla,'' meaning 'stables' in Greek (). The modern Turkish name means "liberation", "salvation", "independence" or "deliverance". On 13 April 1929, si ...
* Meydan
*
Mirahor
*
Mucuk
*
Narlı
*
Narlıdere
Narlıdere is a municipality and Districts of Turkey, district of İzmir Province, Turkey. Its area is 50 km2, and its population is 62,923 (2022). It is fully (100%) urbanized. Narlıdere district area follows the southern coastline of the ...
*
Ortaköy
Ortaköy (, ''Middle Village)'' is a neighbourhood in the municipality and district of Beşiktaş, Istanbul Province, Turkey. Its population is 9,121 (2024). It is on the European shore of the Bosphorus. it was originally a small fishing villag ...
*
Özköy
*
Özlü
*
Palantepe
*
Pamuklu
* Pınarbaşı
*
Sakız
*
Sarıveliler
*
Selamlı
*
Suçatı
*
Tekeli
*
Topkaya
*
Topluca
*
Tuğrul
*
Yalnızcabağ
*
Yapıntı
* Yatırtaş
* Yazalanı
*
Yeşilköy
*
Yeşilyurt
*
Yıldızköy
*
Yukarıköselerli
*
Zeytinçukuru
Climate
Mut has a
hot semi-arid climate
A semi-arid climate, semi-desert climate, or steppe climate is a dry climate sub-type. It is located on regions that receive precipitation below potential evapotranspiration, but not as low as a desert climate. There are different kinds of sem ...
(
Köppen Köppen is a German surname. Notable people with the surname include:
* Bernd Köppen (1951–2014), German pianist and composer
* Carl Köppen (1833-1907), German military advisor in Meiji era Japan
* Edlef Köppen (1893–1939), German author ...
: ''BSh''), with very hot, dry summers, and cool, somewhat rainy winters.
Notable natives
*
Durmuş Yalçın (politician)
* Mut is one of the places in the area that claims to be the burial place of the folk poet
Karacaoğlan.
*
Musa Eroğlu (musician,
bağlama
The bağlama or saz is a family of plucked string instruments and long-necked lutes used in Europe, Balkans, Caucasus, Middle East, Khazar, Central Asia including Germany, France, Belgium, TRNC, Netherlands, Albania, Greece,Bosnia, Serbia, Croat ...
player) was born in Mut.
*
Hüseyin Gezer (sculptor)
*
Seyhan Kurt (poet, writer)
*
Fikri Sağlar (politician)
One of the last sightings of the
Anatolian leopard was near Mut, in the locality called "Dandi" in 2001.
References
External links
District municipality's official website
{{Authority control
Populated places in Mut District
Districts of Mersin Province
Metropolitan district municipalities in Turkey